Of their proud beautie, and th' one moyity Transform'd to fifh for their bold furquedry; But th' upper halfe their hew retayned ftill, And their sweet skill in wonted melody;. Which ever after they abufd to ill, T'allure weake traveillers, whom gotten they did kill. XXXII. So now to Guyon, as he paffed by, Their pleafaunt tunes they fweetly thus applyde ; "O thou fayre fonne of gentle Faery, XXXI. 5. - their bold furquedry;] Pride. See the note on furquedry, F. Q. v. ii. 30. TODD. XXXI. 6. But th' upper halfe their hew retayned ftill, And their Sweet fkill] That is, And they retained their sweet skill: They is often omitted in Spenfer: 'tis elliptically expreffed. See Ovid, Met. v. 563. Virginei vultus et vox humana remanfit." UPTON. XXXII. 3. O thou fayre fonne &c.] This fong of the Mermaids is copied from Homer, Od. p. 184. where the Sirens fay to Ulyffes : > Δεῦρ ̓ ἂγ' ἰὼν πολύαιν Οδυσσεν, μέγα κύδος Αχαιών, Νῆα κατάτησον, ἵνα νωίτερην ὅπ ̓ ἀκάσης. Οὐ γὰρ πω τις τῇδε x. T. λ. JORTIN. XXXII. 8. This is the Port of reft &c.]. Perhaps he bor rowed this from Taffo, C. xv, 63. "Questo è il porto del mondo, e qui il ristoro "De le fue moie, e quel piacer fi fente" UPTON. The worldes fweet In from paine and wearifome turmoyle." XXXIII. With that the rolling fea, refounding foft, And let him heare fome part of their rare me lody XXXIV. But him the Palmer from that vanity - XXXIII. 1. With that &c.] This is very beautiful, and is Spenfer's own invention, as far as I know. JoRTIN. A fimilar idea occurs in a subsequent work, viz. Partheneia Sacra, printed in 1633. See p. 8. "Those water-works, conduits, and aquaducts, which yet you might heare to make a gentle murmur throughout, affording an apt BASE for the birds to defcant on. TODD. XXXIV. 5. When fuddeinly a groffe fog over Spred &c.] "Tis plain that during the whole voyage of this Knight, and his fober conductor, our poet had in view the voyage of Ulyffes; efpecially the xiith book of Homer's Odyffey, where the wife hero meets with the adventures of the Sirens, Scylla, and Charybdis; foon after follows his fhipwreck, and his arrival at the island of Calypfo. Compare Virgil, En. i92. UPTON. With his dull vapour all that desert has, And heavens chearefull face enveloped, That all things one, and one as nothing was, And this great univerfe feemd one confused mas. XXXV. Thereat they greatly were difmayd, ne wift How to direct theyr way in darkenes wide, But feard to wander in that wastefull mist, For tombling into mifchiefe unefpyde: Worfe is the daunger hidden then defcride. Suddenly an innumerable flight Of harmefull fowles about them fluttering cride, And with their wicked wings them ofte did fmight, And fore annoyed, groping in that griefly night. XXXVI. Even all the nation of unfortunate And fatall birds about them flocked were, Such as by nature men abhorre and hate; The ill-fafte owle, deaths dreadfull meffengere; The hoars night-raven, trump of dolefull drere; XXXV. 4. For tombling &c.] That is, Left they should tumble, or, that they might not tumble. See F. Q. iii. vi. 18, vi. x. 11. So, in Mother Hubberds Talc, when the Ape goes to fteal the crown &c. from the fleeping Lion: "Upon his tiptoes nicely he upwent This is after Chaucer, p. 146. edit. Urr. "For percing of his herte." CHURCH, The lether-winged batt, dayes enimy ; The ruefull ftrich, ftill waiting on the bere; The whistler fhrill, that whofo heares doth dy; The hellish harpyes, prophets of fad destiny: XXXVII. All those, and all that els does horror breed, About them flew, and fild their fayles with feare: Yet ftayd they not, but forward did proceed, Whiles th' one did row, and th' other ftifly fteare; Till that at last the weather gan to cleare, And the faire land itfelfe did playnly fhow. Said then the Palmer; " Lo! where does appeare The facred foile where all our perills grow! XXXVI. 6. The lether-winged batt,] Hence Collins, in his beautiful Ode to Evening: "Now air is hufh'd, fave where the weak-ey'd batt "Or where the beetle winds "His fmall but fullen horn." TODD. XXXVI. 7. The ruefull ftrich,] The fcrietch-owl, 5¡ìyk, ftrix. UPTON. - XXXVII. 2. and fild their fayles with feare:] That is, And filled their failes with fearful objects. UPTON. XXXVII. 8. The facred foile] The place where the Enchantrefs lived; therefore I conclude that by facred he means curfed, deteftable, according to that ufe of the word facer. So, in F. Q. v. xii. i. “O facred hunger &c," "facra fames." JORTIN, The Sacred foile is the enchanted foile, as facro is used by the Italian poets or curfed, abominable; for he calls it "the curfed land," F. Q. ii. i. 51. UPTON, Therefore, Sir Knight, your ready arms about you throw." XXXVIII. He hearkned, and his armes about him tooke, The whiles the nimble bote fo well her fped, That with her crooked keele the land fhe ftrooke: Then forth the noble Guyon fallied, And his fage Palmer that him governed; But th' other by his bote behind did stay. They marched fayrly forth, of nought ydred, Both firmely armd for every hard affay, With conftancy and care, gainst daunger and difmay. XXXIX. Ere long they heard an hideous bellowing XXXVIII. 4. fallied] So all the editions. It fhould be falied, as before, C. vi. ft. 38. hard aay,] CHURCH. XXXVIII. 8. phrase in romance, which fome editions, however, have here unwarrantably converted into "fad affay." TODD. XXXIX. 1. Ere long they heard an hideous bellowing 15. Of many beafts, &c.] Spenfer, I believe, had in his eye the coaft of Circe, as defcribed by Virgil, Æn. vii. The reader may alfo compare at his leifure Hom. Od. x. where Ulyffes lands at the Circean promontory in Italy, and vifits the palace of Circe. Never was a story better fuited for poetry; as it is both wonderful and entertaining, and the alle. gory inftructive: I believe too our poet had Ovid in his eye, Met. xiv. 255. "Mille lupi, mixtæque lupis urfæque leæque |